Generations.

Family visits are always fun, especially when you have a house full of cousins, aunts, uncles, sisters, brothers, parents, grandparents, a great-grandmother and a breakfast table filled with her great-grandchildren!

Family coming from near and far and even farther...it was certainly a "most wonderful time of the year"!

Christmas Family pics

 

Christmas morning annual photo

Kind of makes me sad to look at it.  Instead of looking all wide eyed with excitement about what is waiting around the stairwell corner that Santa brought, they just look sleepy. Of course this year we did have to WAKE them up to begin the Christmas morning festivities. They are getting older. Boo on that.  :(

Baby Girl to Elder Son...."Hey, your stocking is singing"

Someone was totally surprised on Christmas morning....TOTALLY. Like I mean  Shock and Awe.   I love it when a plan comes together.  Nothing is more exciting to me than pulling off a great surprise.

This is Elder Son's "mom, are you serious, there's a cell phone in my stocking" face.....

This is PawPaw's hand in the right lower corner using his cell phone to make the now famous first call that enabled Elder Son's stocking to start "singing".   And this is also the children who are looking to the left at their father in total disbelief that their big brother REALLY has a cell phone.

And this is Elder Son once again.....he still can't believe it.

These fun, exciting, broad smiles across the face moments with a teenager, as I'm learning, come less often than I'd like....but OH THE JOY of experiencing them first hand when they do!!!

The annual pic to begin Christmas morning....

there are those (less fortunate souls) who are tortured into waiting on the stairwell for the photo before seeing all their goods that Santa left....

.....and then there is this sweet old soul who has a cushy front row seat downstairs waiting for them, ready anytime.

O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree...

how we all love you....especially the sweet little girl with the giant caterpillar.

The stockings were hung....

I have this thing for polka dots. And cute stockings.  So when I found these right before Thanksgiving, I HAD TO HAVE THEM.  I've always held off from buying expensive stockings or having any of our previous ones mongorammed because I always knew I'd find some I really wanted.  And VOILA!  Sure, there may come a day when I get tired of these, but I hope not, they are too adorable to ever be put away for good!  However, you will notice they aren't monogrammed. 

At the time of purchase, I didn't want to leave them another week for monogramming, I wanted to get them home and hung on our mantle by Thanksgiving.  However, if you look close, you will see blocks sitting atop the mantle over each stocking.  Those are letters from an old letter press printing system used in New York City.  My father-in-law brought them back as a souvenir from their trip with Elder Son to NYC this past summer.  I think they are such a neat piece....we each have our monogram in these letters.  I've wondered how I would display them, they are too cool not to have out, and making them personal to our stocking was the perfect idea. 

 So, the stocking are hung by the chimney with care....now, let's just hope St. Nick remembers to fill them!!

You'll be happy to know the Christmas decor is finally down.

Yes, this is probably the latest we have waited to get the tree down and everything from each room put away...and yes, I realize it is almost mid-January.  In our defense, almost everything was put away before January 8. And we took the tree down and put it away on January 10.  So, sue me....I love Christmas and it's decor....but I know I can't leave it up forever. :)   I will admit that the boys' Auburn tree and Baby Girl's merry and bright tree, are both still up in their rooms....but those too shall be put away soon. I've been a bit busy. 

I did want to share with you a theme I noticed as I was packing up the Christmas this year.....apparently, I have a thing for reindeer.

Yep, they show up in every room...every room on our main floor had some deer, somewhere.  Even the plate and platter set I bought from Southern Living many, many years ago with the "pregnant deer" that many laugh about....she must be Dancer or Vixen. ;) 

Lucky you, I think I'm finished with Christmas post stuff until next December....but don't quote me on that.

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Card '09

I absolutely love receiving Christmas cards....it is one of my favorite parts of the season. I save them all, photo or not, and put them in a scrapbook each year.  It's fun to see how families grow through the years.  I enjoy reading the letters and notes people send.  I enjoy putting all over our entryway to the living room, covering every square inch, and walking through every night looking at the new ones we've added, and perusing the others all over again. 

Every year I make our Christmas cards....and this year may be the last time I go to that trouble!  After assembling 208 cards this year, (and yes, the list was narrowed down, people were left off, crossed out due to lost addresses, haven't heard from them in years, etc.etc.) I am beginning to think I'll just order me some fine and dandy ones online next year!  We've received so many cute ones from friends and family this year!  Of course, I say every year is the last to do them myself, but then fall victim to some pretty ribbon and the whole process starts all over again.  I have some weird fascination with ribbons....just ask T5...he just rolls his eyes when I show him a new spool I've recently bought....to add to the 4 crates full of ribbon I currently own.  :) 

Anyway, here's the card....in case you weren't one of those who received it in the mail, Merry Christmas from us to you!!  ....it's probably only because I didn't have your address! Email it to us! :)  That would give me an excuse to go out and buy some more ribbon!!! :)

Ornaments from the heart....

                                    

Each month, to all the H3 members, I mail out a small reminder of the scripture we are memorizing.  Just the printed verse on some pretty linen paper with a colorful ribbon attached.  My thoughts are that after a few months, some of these scriptures may be harder to remember over time, but it may help joggle the ol' brain pathways to have a "picture" to go with the words.  The picture being the reminder card. 

Because it is Christmas, I couldn't resist also sending a little something else in the mail this month.  My intention was to paint each and every member (we have 23 who've let me know they were participating with us in this scripture journey--but there is always room for more....so what are you waiting for?....join us!) an ornament at a local paint your own pottery place (All Fired Up).   That would have taken a good bit of time, painting and then waiting to have them fired before I could ship them out. 

Plus, the devil has been wearing me out these last few weeks, most notably with Baby Girl being so sickly, but also because I am certain he doesn't like the thoughts of us H3--Hiding His words in our Hearts.  Reading, studying, talking about and learning the Lord's words gives us an edge....the devil hates it when we get an edge.  But even so, time & energy were not on my side for this project.  So, I had to give in to plan B. 

Such is life....it has taken me a sweet forever to realize that sometimes you just have to roll with it.  Which, thankfully, is where I currently reside....the stage of "just rolling with it".  

I gathered a few boxes of clear ornaments.  Then transformed each, one at a time, with one lady in mind.  Regretfully, I had inquired about their favorite colors too late in the game to get them all matched up.  But I sent what I had made anyway.  (sorry if you didn't receive one that was your favorite color of choice) And I pray they all arrived without being shattered!  :)

They weren't hand painted ornaments, all matchy-matchy like I had envisioned.  But they were heartfelt.  And in the end I liked this idea better.....(God works like that sometimes, making you use your plan B because it was actually his plan A all along).

We are all so very near the same, and yet each unique in our own way.  God made us all....similiar but different. And he adds to us each day....through trials, tribulations, joy, sorrow, peace, mercy, grace, forgiveness, love....the list is endless with the Lord we serve.

You see, with God's hands, we're kind of like these glass ornaments....changed, adorned. 

And I, for one, am enjoying this journey with Him....praying daily to be a little more in His likeness. 

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.....

After thinking we had a jump start by getting our big tree up the week of Thanksgiving, I tricked myslef into thinking we were ahead of the game.  Now, it's mid-December, and I still don't have every room decorated!!!  However, here's a sampling of what is already out and about....

Our snowman greeter on the front porch

Glass trees in the dining room

My favorite Nativity Set

Our Living Room

This little Santa suit hangs where else, in the laundry room, of course.

Kitchen Chandelier and Advent Buckets in background

I painted these cute small plates at ALL FIRED UP....a paint your own pottery shop. Each family member has their own and in the extra spot at our table I painted one that says "Friend".

This is my favorite Christmas plate/dish/platter/decoration type thingy.....I love it's southern sentiment!! :)

Maybe if I am unexpectedly alotted more than 24 hours in a day this week I'll get around to posting pics of the kid's trees and such.  Right after I go out and buy some new ornaments for the boys tree....because the sun slap faded their blue ones to a horrid looking grey.  Who knew??  I should have, especially since the sun had also slap faded their curtains the year before. Why would I go spend money on more ornaments to fade this year???  Good question...and it's because during the spring I forced their father to finally mount the blinds in their room....after living with stark morning light in the wee hours, for 5 years.  Just like these Christmas decorations, everything in due time, folks. 

Hey, it makes them appreciate it more, or at least I think that's what their father would say. :) 

Christmas Cake....that tastes as good as it looks.

A few days ago I found these cute Christmas spatulas....aren't they the cutest??  And I had to have them for my kitchen.  It was a need....at least that's how I explained it to T5.  Anyway, those spatulas sparked the desire to begin Christmas baking.  Time has been our enemy...field trips, doctors visits, and the running back and forth of Baby Girl to school....she can only stand to stay a few hours at a time because of her sickness. Mono is a real energy zapper.  So....it's cut into our baking sessions.

However, after looking at the cuteness every day, I could stand it no longer....so we baked something:

Something quick. Something easy.  Something festive.  Something yummy.  Something merry and bright. Something that SCREAMS -- WE LOVE CHRISTMAS!!!  Do you think we hit the mark on that one? 

And then because all I really wanted to do was use the cute spatulas....and we certainly did not need to eat to all that cake....nor could we ever...it was two boxes of cake mix, people....plus 2 1/2 packages of cream cheese for the icing.

So what to do with all that cake?  We sliced it right up first thing this morning and Baby Girl pretended to be Santa's elf.  She delivered 14 pieces.  What? You didn't get one?  Sorry....take it up with Santa, apparently your name missed the list....and yes, we checked it twice. :)

Anyone need a good gingerbread tree maker???

 I have several qualified personnel at my house, 3 actual professionals, that can be hired out.  Please have extra candy on hand for consuming purposes....not decorating.  And if you schedule this activity properly, you could just skip out on having to cook supper. 

However, I'd just like to add...a meal based entirely of sucrose and food coloring is a small price to pay for this beautiful tablescape.